FAMILY HISTORY RESEARCH: Getting started
Tracing one’s ancestors can be a thrilling and rewarding experience. Genealogy gives an appreciation of your ancestors as you research and record your Family Tree and put your findings in context with social history of their era.
Note: The websites supplied within RESEARCH pages are not linked by clicking. Copy and paste the quoted URL to your own search engine.
Golden rules of genealogy
Source: Australian Family Tree Connections Magazine, December 2011.
© Arthur Phillip Chapter of Fellowship of First Fleeters 2018-
Image: Display board at First Fleet Park, Wallabadah NSW
Tracing one’s ancestors can be a thrilling and rewarding experience. Genealogy gives an appreciation of your ancestors as you research and record your Family Tree and put your findings in context with social history of their era.
Note: The websites supplied within RESEARCH pages are not linked by clicking. Copy and paste the quoted URL to your own search engine.
Golden rules of genealogy
- ALWAYS work backwards from the known (yourself) to your forebears
- NEVER believe everything on a Birth, Death or Marriage certificate
- NEVER completely trust the spelling of surnames, place names etc
- ALWAYS check surname variants when researching
- ALWAYS have at least two separate sources of proof for each event
- REMEMBER that everything is only speculation until verified
- ALWAYS photocopy or scan certificates and important documents and leave the originals in a safe place
- IF a document exists, read it, and record its reference
- SHARE your information and documentation (copies only) with other researchers. Once you have established direct lineage to a First Fleeter, join the Fellowship of First Fleeters and your local Chapter (Arthur Phillip Chapter for the northern areas of Sydney)
- JOIN at least one Family History Group, Genealogy or Historical Society (our closest is Ku-ring-gai Historical Society, in rooms nearby)
- RECORD meticulously all sources and references no matter how innocuous – to find it again may prove to be impossible; and it may be essential to have this information to verify your findings
- TAKE your research in stages, maintain your focus on your objective – be patient as family research can be frustrating and expensive.
- There are many web sites and history publications available to assist with your research, but always apply the golden rules when researching and using information available on the Internet and in printed matter.
Source: Australian Family Tree Connections Magazine, December 2011.
© Arthur Phillip Chapter of Fellowship of First Fleeters 2018-
Image: Display board at First Fleet Park, Wallabadah NSW
